Luxury Ingredients: The Most Expensive Food You Can Buy

We're in a recession? Could have fooled us with these extravagant ingredients still on the market finding buyers. From gourmet mushrooms to labor-intensive spices and pork infused with Spanish mountain air, check out our list of the 12 most expensive ingredients available right now.

Macadamia Nuts

$30-$40 per kilo (2.2 lbs)

The Macadamia nut's intimidating price tag stems from its many purposes. Not only is it buttery and delicious tasting, but the nut's high oil content is useful in cosmetics, especially in skin care products. It takes a Macadamia tree 7 to 10 years to produce nuts, and the nuts must be cracked before sold. Their shells are so tough, they would break a standard home-use nutcracker.